emissions
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California began regulating vehicle emissions within its boundaries before the Environmental Protection Agency was even a gleam in President Richard Nixon's eye. Since that agency was founded in 1971 with an executive order by Nixon, the state has retained the right to set its own—more stringent—emission rules. Now, under President Donald Trump and climate-science denier Scott Pruitt, who runs the EPA, there's widespread fear that the agency will attack the "waiver" it granted to California that permits its zero-emission vehicle sales requirements. DON'T MISS: Ruling that EPA must...
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Ruling that EPA must regulate carbon emissions: now 10 years old
Anniversaries often provide an opportunity to reflect on important past events, review what has happened since, and reflect upon the future. April 2 of this year marks the 10th anniversary of the Supreme Court ruling in Massachusetts vs EPA in which the EPA was forced to regulate carbon emissions...
John Briggs -
EPA science advisers axed; execs from regulated industries to replace them (updated)
While much of the nation's capital is preoccupied with the unpredictable Trump administration and its possible ties to Russia, the fate of the Environmental Protection Agency generates less news coverage. That's not to say there hasn't been news. Administrator Scott Pruitt is proceeding swiftly...
John Voelcker -
Energy use for hydrogen fuel-cell vehicles: higher than electrics, even hybrids (analysis)
It's now clear that the zero-emission vehicles of the future will be powered by electric motors. The electricity to power those motors, however, will come from one of two competing technologies: high-capacity batteries or hydrogen fuel cells. The debate over which technology is superior, which has...
John Voelcker -
Extra fuel used if 2022-2025 CAFE rules delayed would be low: here's the math
Barbie never said "Math is hard!" The talking doll did, notoriously, say "Math class is tough!" in 1989, sparking a media firestorm over gender roles in childrens' toys and then a voluntary recall by Mattel for offended parents. Reworded, however, the point remains accurate: many people don't...
John Voelcker -
EPA website removes climate-change pages, because science contradicts Pruitt policy goals
On Saturday, tens of thousands of people joined a Science March in Washington, D.C., to support use of data-based science to set government policy on climate change. The day before, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency removed detailed climate data and scientific information because it appeared...
John Voelcker -
It has become increasingly more evident that carmakers must take aggressive steps to ensure that diesel cars and light trucks meet current environmental regulations. Tests done by Emissions Analytics found that the majority of new diesel-powered cars sold in Europe do not meet the Euro 6 emission standards for nitrogen oxides (NOx) in real-world use. Worse, some of them emitted as much as 12 times the current levels when tested in real-world driving—and didn't meet even the far lower Euro 3 standards from decades ago. DON'T MISS: VW Dieselgate on Year Later: What Have We Learned about...
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Even oil companies now acknowledge electric cars are coming
Advocates have long suggested that electric vehicles will begin to take over daily driving duties, slowly but surely, from the internal-combustion engine. Now, even oil companies are starting to acknowledge that there may be reality in that dream of the future. France's Total SA, one of the world's...
Sean Szymkowski -
Pruitt won't kill EPA 'endangerment' finding on climate change
The current EPA administrator, Scott Pruitt, does not accept the scientific consensus on human contribution to climate change, though he has given some contradictory statements on that matter. His views correspond closely to those of his boss, President Donald Trump, who notoriously compared the...
John Voelcker -
The day without coal: Britain's first one since 1882
The Industrial Revolution that started around 1750 in England was powered largely by coal. With Watt's invention of the steam engine and the emergence of railways in the mid-nineteenth century, the carbon-dense fuel was central to the change from an agricultural economy to an industrial one. Last...
John Voelcker -
U.S. exit from Paris Climate Agreement unclear; Trump team clashes on policy
As the Trump Administration nears its 100th day, it seems fair to say that it is still emitting mixed messages on multiple issues, from foreign policy to climate change. On that latter, it's important to reiterate that the president and many of his appointed agency and department heads deny the...
John Voelcker -
Toyota 'Project Portal' hydrogen fuel-cell heavy-duty semi tractor as proof of concept
The challenges of building fueling infrastructure for passenger cars powered by hydrogen fuel cells are well known by now. Toyota, Honda, and Hyundai now lease low volumes of fuel-cell vehicles in selected areas of California where a few dozen hydrogen fueling stations are now up and running. The...
John Voelcker -
If you're a diehard diesel fan, you now have one last chance to buy a brand-new Volkswagen TDI diesel car. Well, almost brand-new, anyhow: the cars in question are 2015 models, and about 11,000 of them will go on sale after they have been modified. Once they're sold, there will likely be no more new Volkswagen diesels sold in the U.S.—perhaps ever. DON'T MISS: Here's which VW TDIs can and cannot be fixed The vehicles in question come from the Beetle, Beetle Convertible, Golf hatchback, Golf SportWagen, Jetta compact sedan, and Passat mid-size sedan lineups. All of them are powered by...
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Europe diesel sales sag slightly, continuing trend since 2012
Despite efforts by Chevrolet to step into the void left by Volkswagen, sales of diesel passenger vehicles in the U.S. may have been permanently crippled by the VW diesel emission scandal. In Europe, however, diesel has been entrenched for decades as roughly 50 percent of the market. Even before the...
John Voelcker -
Electric jet startup is backed by Boeing and JetBlue
Seattle-based startup Zunum Aero has received funding from Boeing HorizonX and JetBlue Technology Ventures toward making its dream of electrified air travel a reality. Sometimes billed as the Tesla of the airplane industry, Zunum is developing a relatively small regional aircraft with about 700...
Green Car Reports -
Automakers seek deal to delay EPA's 2022-2025 emission rules
Despite some alarmist reporting, President Donald Trump hasn't abolished the EPA's vehicle emission limits. Nor has he wiped out corporate average fuel-economy rules, set by the NHTSA. So far, he's done two things: signed an executive order reopening the comment period for 2022-2025 EPA emission...
John Voelcker -
Clean Power Plan carbon cuts may survive, even if Trump EPA kills rule
The Clean Power Plan’s future looks uncertain at best under President Donald Trump. The commander-in-chief appears to be urging American utility companies to pivot back towards burning coal to produce electricity. Ending the so-called “war on coal” is intended to create jobs in...
Green Car Reports -
Trump can't affect global climate-change progress, says Mayor Bloomberg
Former New York City mayor Michael Bloomberg has gone on record saying publicly what most analysts have discussed privately: the notion that Washington can direct the energy market back towards coal is wrong. In fact, Bloomberg is willing to go further: he believes that the U.S. can still meet the...
Green Car Reports -
If you have your eyes on a used Volkswagen or Audi TDI turbodiesel, you may wind up having to pay more today for 2009 through 2015 models than you would have when they were new. At least right now, only 2015 model-year versions of VW and Audi vehicles sold with the 2.0-liter turbodiesel 4-cylinder TDI engine can be modified to comply with emissions standards, which will keep them legal for road use. A few sellers appear to be capitalizing on that fact, with prices having climbed substantially for those cars in online ads. You're still essentially out of luck if you want a 2009 through 2014...
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Trump budget slashes EPA emission testing, hits makers with higher fees
The prospect of ongoing operations as usual continues to darken for the Environmental Protection Agency. According to a detailed internal budget document published in the The Washington Post, the Trump administration wants to eliminate virtually all federal funding for the agency’s vehicle...
Green Car Reports -
Large corporations, manufacturers stick with climate pledges despite Trump
The new U.S. president, Donald Trump, is working to eradicate every Obama policy to limit the carbon emissions that contribute to climate change. Having variously called the science behind climate change a "Chinese plot" to hurt the U.S. and referred to it using an expletive for bovine excrement...
John Voelcker -
London's $27 entry charge for pre-2016 diesel cars to start April 2019
For more than 13 years, London has collected a stiff charge from motor vehicles entering the congested core of the city during weekday business hours. Known as the congestion charge, the fee of £11.50 a day, or $14.50 (£10 with automatic payment, or $12.50) is levied from 6 am to 7 pm...
John Voelcker -
When will it be unacceptable to drive a car with a tailpipe? Poll results
No vehicle on earth is entirely free of emissions; even electric cars charged on renewable energy have emissions associated with their manufacturing. Those emissions, however, are a tiny fraction of the carbon dioxide and other substances emitted by gasoline or diesel cars when scientifically...
John Voelcker -
Trump's climate-change order: now what happens?
These do not appear to be the best of times for President Donald J. Trump, but his agenda of eliminating regulations and promoting fossil fuels continues to roll out. This week, Trump appeared at the EPA to sign an executive order that directed the agency to reopen and reassess its Clean Power Plan...
John Voelcker